Author's Note: Took me some time to update this but the good news is, I've drafted an outline for the story's plot so at least, I have a clearer idea of where this is going. I hope you'll have a fantastic New Year in 3 days' time. Don't forget to end 2014 with a bang! ^_~ Have fun!

Disclaimer/s from Prologue remains the same for this chapter.

Chapter One: Blood like Sapphire Gemstones

Present day 21st century.

The body lay inside a rectangular glass case in the center of a stage. The bottom of the case was swatted in soiled cloth, a fabric made of soft, shiny material that glistened metallic periwinkle from the glare of incandescent lights hanging on the ceiling over the stage.

The auditorium itself was spacious, able to accommodate over three hundred spectators. The walls on both sides were adorned with windows but red velvet curtains hung over them, dimming the place. Rows and rows of chairs faced the stage, arranged in a crescent pattern. The chairs were all cushioned with velvet red seat covers that perfectly matched the curtains. Three boom speakers hung overhead and on the stage, to the left of the glass case, stood a wooden podium and a microphone.

A meeting had ended just a couple of hours ago. The auditorium had been temporarily locked for the duration of the day but the lights over the stage remained on, illuminating the delicate creature lying motionless inside the glass case.

The creature lay there naked, except for a piece of silk cloth woven between his thighs. He had pale, almost translucent skin, with noticeable blue veins running along the length of his arms and legs. His head was tilted to one side. From a short distance, his face appeared to be wearing an expression of innocence but a closer look would reveal a hint of pain from the way his forehead wrinkled and his lips drooped. Nevertheless, the planes of his face were polished with gentle arches for the eyebrows and the delicate bridge of the nose. Even his sad lips were supple to the touch.

The creature's eyes were pressed tightly shut as if they were permanently sewn closed. His lashes were short but thick. His brown hair had bright undertones of orange. It was cut short just below the chin, and the strands, curling ever so slightly at the ends, framed his anguished cherubic face.

His smooth chest connected to a lithe torso then to a flat stomach without a navel. His arms lay on his side. The fingers on his hands were long and slender and curved just enough for the nacreous nails to scratch the surface of the clear glass. One of his thumbs was missing a fingernail. His legs stretched out with his feet just a few inches apart. His right leg had a patch of exposed flesh where the skin had been peeled off. On his left side was a palpable gash measuring around 7 to 8 inches long beginning from the center of his stomach. Dried royal blue blood congealed along the edges of the wound. Even the fabric beneath him had stains of the blood on it.

But the most remarkable and probably also the most precious feature of the creature was the magnificent feathered wings on his bare back. When completely unfurled, researchers found out that the wings measured 7 and a half meters from one tip to the other. But right now, as the nephilim lay unmoving inside the glass case, his wings were folded against his body and the feathers pressed snugly against one another.

There was a time when the nephilim had magnificent wings the color or rose pink with healthy feathers overlapping one another in perfect arrangement that enabled flight for majestic beings of his kind. But three days after his capture, the feathers on his wings had been in disarray and almost a quarter of the feathers were plucked out to be studied further. The bones of one of his wings even suffered breakage while he was incarcerated in a cramped metal cage, rendering him unable to fly. He might have still been able to glide but under his trapped circumstances, he was never able to try.

A latch turned in the knob and a silver-haired man made his way alone inside the auditorium. He walked along the middle aisle until he reached the first row of chairs. With his left hand, he gripped the back of a chair to keep himself steady. In his right hand, his fingers curved around a tiny vial pressed against his palm. Tightening his grip on the miniscule vial, he focused his hazel brown eyes on the creature lying inside the glass case. His gaze darted from the nephilim's face to his damaged wings then to the grisly wound on his side. The young man winced a little bit as he studied the wound that never healed. The gash was deep – he knew that for certain. He was there when they sliced through the nephilim's tender flesh and he knew the nephilim was alive and very much awake when the incision was made. As the sharp scalpel tore the flesh apart and opened a seam in the stomach, he and the rest of the team watched as bright blue liquid dripped from the wound. A surgical retractor was inserted into the cut to keep the wound open as the blood was collected and sealed off in an airtight plastic bag.

His left hand let go of the back of the chair and he placed a palm above his own stomach. He shared a similar gash in his side with the nephilim before him. But whereas the nephilim's wound was probably fatal to the angel, to the young man, his incision was his saving grace.

He moved on closer to the front of the auditorium and climbed on the stage. He reached out a hand and touched the surface of the glass case. He gazed at the pained expression on the nephilim's face. It made him sad to see such a glorious creature suffer so much pain. Being this close to the nephilim enabled him to notice how the coagulated blood crusting on the edge of the wound looked more and more like drops of sapphire gemstones when they dry. It was the same blood that was now held in the vial resting on his palm.

The young man rested his forehead against the glass case, closed his eyes and let his memories come to him. The events of the last three months until his surgery had been intense and fast-paced that looking back on it, Ohtori Choutarou now found them obscure.

He considered himself a simple man with simple wishes and desires. He was passionately in love with Shishido Ryou, his lover for over four years and the source of his happiness. But even though Shishido was man enough to dedicate his whole life and attention to Ohtori, the latter's family was dismayed with their relationship. Ohtori's abusive stepfather forced Ohtori to transfer to another country and leave Shishido behind. Ohtori felt his heart would shatter in the separation that he decided to make a risky move. He left his family behind, located Shishido and was determined to spend the rest of his life with him. He missed his mother and his sister but he knew they would never understand.

"You know what I am, Choutarou. You know my way of life is not for you," he remembered Shishido telling him but Ohtori didn't care about that.

"Then make me as you are, Ryou," he pleaded. He didn't want them to ever be separated.

Shishido hesitated. He had been made into a vampire a decade ago by a certain Niou Masaharu who tricked him into receiving the vampiric blood. Although he had grown accustomed to the vampire way of life, he sometimes reminisced about his human life and found it unfair that he lost the chance to live it. Shishido didn't want Ohtori to lose that chance as well.

Despite the differences in their races, Shishido and Ohtori loved each other with such passion that seemed to transcend any eccentricities. They lived happily together in a small house near the lair of the Coven of Blood vampires where Shishido was a member. Some vampires were against the relationship, claiming that the human Ohtori would be the downfall of their race. Nevertheless, Shishido and Ohtori were lucky enough to be granted the protection of the coven leader Shiraishi Kuranosuke, who believed that Ohtori was merely in love and was not a threat in any way.

The pair lived in harmony for some time until one day, Ohtori became sick with high fever. His limbs became weak that he had to stay all day in bed. At first, Ohtori was not alarmed. Fevers were usually gone in a matter of days. But Shishido was worried that Ohtori had contracted a spreading disease in the nearby cities. Their worst fears were confirmed when Ohtori started having multiple black and blue bruises all over his body. The news said that an epidemic was imminent and unfortunately, the disease was new and both cause and treatment were not yet determined. The disease had notoriously claimed close to a hundred lives and no patient was ever reported to have been cured. The death toll was rising and the humans were in a growing state of panic.

Shishido was beginning to be overcome with the temptation to turn Ohtori into his kind in order to save his life. He discussed the matter with the members of the coven but one of the older vampires, Yagyuu Hiroshi, opposed the idea.

"His blood may already have been tainted due to the disease. You will die if you drink it," Yagyuu reasoned out to a desperate Shishido.

Shishido was at a loss of what to do but it was not in his nature to give up especially on matters that concern his beloved Ohtori. He knew taking Ohtori to hospitals was not much help; it could only get dangerous for Ohtori's condition if he was exposed to more patients. Besides, the doctors themselves were baffled with the disease and couldn't prescribe any treatment.

One night, Shishido sat by Ohtori's bed as the latter lay sleeping. He let his fingers gently graze Ohtori's cheek.

"I am not ready to lose you," Shishido whispered as blood tears welled in his eyes. He felt frustrated that he couldn't do a thing to save his lover. Shishido grasped tightly at his dark brown hair and focused all his concentration into thinking of a way – any way that could possibly alleviate Ohtori's condition.

Ohtori moaned in his sleep. The pain in his body was increasing with every minute. Shishido held his hand in his. "I will not lose you, Choutarou, I promise. I'll do whatever it takes." He planted a kiss on the sleeping Ohtori's forehead and in that kiss was the promise that he would return with a solution.

Shishido left the house before sunrise to seek out the two humans he trusted other than Ohtori. It was a shot in the dark because he didn't know if their location is the right place to find a solution but Shishido made up his mind that something tentative was better than sitting around and doing nothing at all.

He stood in front of a stark white building, his heightened perception of sight peering into a window and seeing a light flickering in one of the rooms on the upper floors. The building could pass by as any other in the deserted part of the city. It had the appearance of a typical building common in the area – rectangular in shape and about 40 storeys high. Yet, there was neither a sign indicating what the business in the building was nor were people seen entering or leaving the premises. There was not a visible entrance to the building and no one could be seen loitering around outside the grounds. And yet, Shishido was aware that there was a bustle of activities going on inside.

Shishido was not sure how to gain access to the facilities inside. He looked around and noticed a tree to the side of the building. The tree wasn't that tall but it could give Shishido some leverage. He climbed on to the highest branch pointing out directly to an open window. Shishido crouched from his position on the branch and kicked off his legs to leap on the window sill. Vampires gain the ability to move at quick speed or even master teleportation. But since Shishido was only ten years in the vampiric blood at most, he was yet to learn the skills and techniques that older, more experienced vampires were adept at.

He let his feet dangle through the window sill before he jumped off and planted himself on the carpeted floor. He looked around and noticed that the room he ended up in appeared to be some sort of a meeting hall. There was an oval table in the center made of polished mahogany surrounded by cushioned swivel chairs. Shishido turned to move towards the door but the moment he took a step, a shrill buzzer sounded. The alarm was so loud that Shishido had to cover his ears. Vampires had a heightened sense of hearing and the buzzer sounded ten times louder and shriller to Shishido. He made a move closer to the window but before he could jump out again, the door of the meeting hall opened and two men stood in the doorway. One had blue hair and was the taller of the two. The shorter one had red violet hair. Both wore white laboratory gowns. The taller man flashed a card to a switch and the alarm stopped.

"Ryou?" The one with the red violet hair called out to him.

Shishido removed the palms covering his ears and turned to look. "God, Mukahi, I'm glad I found you!"

The one called Mukahi gave out a snort. "That's new. What brings you trespassing into our facilities?"

"You have one heck of an alarm," Shishido countered, relief spreading across his face at the sight of his old friends before he was turned into a vampire.

"We have hundreds of those," the blue-haired man joined in the conversation. "Every room and hallway is equipped with an alarm system. And those alarms are sensitive to movements. A movement in a locked room triggers an alarm and only members of our society can activate and deactivate the buzzers. That's how we ensure we're safe from trespassers."

"Well then, your alarm systems seem to work just fine," Shishido said. "I'm glad to see you, too, Yuushi."

"You're being uncharacteristically welcoming after all these years. Is that the effect of being a vampire?" Mukahi laughed. "Next thing I know, you might be asking for hugs and I wouldn't be surprised."

Shishido managed a weak smile. "I don't have time for that, though."

Yuushi frowned at the sight of a serious Shishido. "Yeah? So what brings you here? You're not here to drink our blood, are you?"

"Choutarou needs help." Shishido finally managed to say after a moment of silence.

Yuushi yanked back one of the swivel chairs. "I sense this is something urgent if you came to us for help. Have a seat."

Shishido took the seat Yuushi offered. Mukahi and Yuushi pulled back their own chairs and sat on opposite sides of him.

"Choutarou came down with an illness for almost a week now." Shishido began. "At first, he only had a fever but his fever worsened through the days. His body is so weak he couldn't leave the bed. And now, his skin is marked with large black and blue bruises. I'm afraid those are symptoms of—"

"Black Blood," Yuushi interrupted.

"What?"

"It's what the doctors fear are going to be the new endemic. Black Blood is not the official name of the disease. We coined that term for use in our research."

"What is it exactly?"

Yuushi sat back on his chair and crossed his legs before him. "It's a chronic disease of the blood. It's some sort of an infection that turns the naturally red human blood into a black, poisonous, petroleum-like substance. It spreads relatively slow but patients can die in less than a year. As you might've heard from the news, what causes Black Blood is still unknown and therefore, has no available cures yet."

Shishido sat in stony silence as the gravity of what Yuushi said dawned on him. He could lose Ohtori in a matter of months. He felt tremendously hopeless.

"But we have a theory for a cure," Mukahi said suddenly and a sense of hope jolted back into Shishido.

"Tell me about it."

"You see, this is the secret society of Angelology. The society was established almost 2000 years ago and we, the Angelologists, have dedicated ourselves to the study of angels."

Angels. Normally, Shishido would wrinkle his nose at the thought. He didn't believe in the existence of angels even back when his friends Oshitari Yuushi and Gakuto Mukahi had expressed desires to enter the secret society of Angelology. But now, he was willing to entertain the idea if it meant saving his beloved Ohtori.

"There are creatures known as the Nephilims. They are a half-human, half-angel hybrid. Our theory is that there is something in their blood that might provide a cure to this specific disease," Mukahi continued. "Of course, it has never been tried before because it is hard to come by nephilims although there are sightings reported in the past as documented in our archives."

"How do you plan on using their blood?" Shishido asked, determined to get to know more about the matter.

"We will collect the human blood from the patient and mix the nephilian blood with it. It is highly possible that the chemical composition of the nephilian blood can purify the infected blood and restore it to its original state of redness and healthiness. Then, we can transfer the cleansed blood back to the patient and wait for signs of recovery," Yuushi explained, picking up from where Mukahi left off.

"But how do you know that the nephilian blood can possibly do this?"

"The properties of nephilian blood have been thoroughly studied in the 17th century by Mizuki Hajime, the most well-known Angelologist in our circle. His success is attributed to his close encounter with a nephilim but unfortunately, he died before he could publish his findings and the rest of his major works have been missing. We do have some of his earlier works and drafts in our possession. His specialty was his research on nephilian blood."

Shishido was silent for a moment as he took in what Yuushi and Mukahi had told him. The whole idea was brimming with possibilities but he couldn't be too sure.

"What's the plan now, Ryou?" Mukahi prodded him.

Shishido found it hard to give out a straight answer. His decision would either save Ohtori or be fatal to him.

"Where will the surgery take place?" He finally managed to blurt out.

"Our facilities are equipped with laboratories and equipments for surgical procedures," Yuushi assured him. "They're all in the basement."

"And the nephilim?"

"Now, that is the real question," Yuushi smirked. "There might be a way to find one but to capture it is close to impossible. Humans just don't have the strength to match those creatures."

Shishido took the hint. "I think vampires have more than enough strength to capture a nephilim."

"Perhaps," Mukahi said, "but don't be rash about it, bloodsucker. Nephilims abound in daytime while you can't stand the sun."

Shishido suddenly smashed his fist on the table. "There will be a way, Mukahi!"

Ohtori was getting increasingly worried that Shishido was gone most of the time.

"Ryou, what are you up to?" He finally asked after Shishido came home at an hour dangerously close to sunrise. Ohtori felt weaker as the days went by. He was coughing up badly and he found it a chore to even sit up on the bed.

Shishido came close to him, his skin paler than usual. Ohtori knew Shishido hadn't been feeding himself on blood these past few days.

"You have me worried, Ryou," Ohtori said as Shishido caressed his silver tresses. "If only I could give you my blood to drink…"

Shishido finally spoke up. "You need not worry about me at all, love. I'm doing everything I can for you." He took Ohtori's hand in his and planted a kiss on it. Ohtori was tearing. He could feel he was going to die soon from his disease and he didn't want Shishido to suffer because of him.

One night, Shishido took Ohtori in his arms and together, they travelled to another city, a few miles north of where they live. They came to a stark white building solitarily standing at the end of a deserted road. Two men awaited their arrival and led them to the entrance of the building located in an underground tunnel.

Yuushi and Mukahi led them to a large, bare room. The walls were the color of drab gray. The room was dimly lit with only an industrial hanging light hovering over a metal cage. The hanging light had the effect of focusing all attention on the illuminated cage below it, and on whatever is contained behind its bars.

Ohtori squinted his eyes to look at what was in the cage. At first, he thought it was a gigantic bird with feathered wings the color of a rose's petal. The bars cramped around the wings, restricting any movement. Then, he noticed a slight rise and fall of the wings as if the creature was breathing.

Mukahi tapped his foot on the floor. "This is our prized catch."

At the sound of his voice, the creature made a sudden jerk as if awakened from his doze. He raised his head and turned his face to the direction where the four men stood. It was then that Ohtori realized with a shock that the creature was no bird. It looked like a boy in his teenage years except he had a pair of wings on his back. The creature wrapped his hands around the bars in front of him, his russet eyes gazing out with a lethargic, pleading look.

Shishido took Ohtori's hand in his own. "We've worked so hard for this in the past few days, Choutarou. Your cure is within reach now."

Ohtori tore his eyes off the creature and addressed the others with him. "Cure? How?" There were a thousand questions beginning to form in his mind.

Yuushi placed a hand on his shoulder. "We need to prepare you for your surgery."

"Surgery?" Ohtori was baffled and turned to Shishido. "Ryou, what is he talking about? What's going on?"

Shishido placed his hands on either side of Ohtori's face and pressed his forehead against his. "Choutarou, please, just trust me. I'm not going to let you die."

Ohtori was brought to the room down the corridor and was made to lie down a hospital bed. Shishido stood guard by his side. They could hear screams coming from the bare room. Ohtori had a vague idea what that was all about. They heard the sound of rattling chains and metals crashing against each other. It took a few more minutes until the screams, bangs and crashes died down.

The door to the surgery room opened and Yuushi, Mukahi and two other men wheeled in a metal stretcher. The creature from the cage was strapped to it, his limbs bound by tight leather cuffs and thick chains. His chest and wings were bound by leather straps. His mouth had been stuffed with a gag. The creature moved his head from side to side, trying to break free.

Ohtori was introduced to Inui Sadaharu and Yanagi Renji, two senior Angelologists who were going to be his attending surgeons.

Inui adjusted the frame of his thick-lensed glasses and peered down at the nephilim. "We've waited so long for this moment. All this time, we've been studying about your kind in ancient manuscripts and I never thought I'd live to see the day I come so close to one of you. But here you are and we're not going to let this chance slip by."

Ohtori watched as the surgeons got to work. They put on masks and gloves. A steel tray was placed on the table and on it gleamed various sharp tools.

Ohtori's eyes grew bigger with shock at what he was witnessing. First, they cut off a few strands from the nephilim's hair and deposited it inside a vial. Then, the incision at his side was made and Ohtori thought that he would faint. He found the treatment all too much, even inhumane.

Yanagi came up beside his bed and Ohtori felt a prick of a needle on the inside of his elbow. He watched as the fluid inside the syringe drained into his vein. He started to feel lightheaded. He remembered seeing the creature squirming before he closed his eyes and drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep.

He had been asleep for almost a whole day after the surgery. Upon waking up, Ohtori opened his eyes to the sight of Shishido tenderly watching over him.

"Ryou…" he tried to speak.

"Everything's alright," Shishido hushed him. "Your surgery was a success. The test results came in and your body is doing a wonderful job of recovering."

Ohtori lifted an arm and saw that most of the blue and black bruises had faded. He was also feeling a whole lot better except for a slight sting of pain from the fresh wound at his side. He could move his limbs around again and his fever had subsided.

"Ryou,"Ohtori breathed out, "what happened to the angel?"

Shishido answered his question with a smile. "It all worked out for everyone, Choutarou. You've been cured and the Angelologists have all the samples they need."

There came a soft knock on the door and Mukahi and Yuushi entered.

"How are you feeling, Choutarou?" Yuushi asked him, taking out a clipboard and making notes on a piece of paper.

"Better. Is it true I'm cured?"

"Completely," Mukahi answered. "We've drawn out blood samples after your surgery. They were red as healthy, oxygenated blood should be. And there are no more traces of the black substance anywhere in your blood stream."

"I…I couldn't thank you enough," Ohtori stammered.

Shishido, Yuushi and Mukahi exchanged looks.

"There is a way," Yuushi began. "You see, Black Blood still has no determined causes. We're working on getting to the bottom of that. But the more important thing is that we have discovered a cure."

Ohtori nodded. "And…?" He added, feeling there was more to what Yuushi was saying.

"We need your testimony. We're working on a medical journal. We would feature your laboratory tests and results to prove that the cure is in our hands."

"To which end, if I may ask?"

Mukahi chuckled. "To cure people suffering from Black Blood, first and foremost. We couldn't let this escalate into a global pandemic, could we? Your surgery is a medical breakthrough, do you understand? Until today, Angelology has been considered as a pseudoscience and a study of merely fantastic bodies. After this, the way people see Angelology would change. It would no longer have to be a secret society and we could even anticipate an increase in funding for further researches." Mukahi's eyes twinkled at the prospects.

"To this end," Yuushi stressed, "we would need the nephilims now more than ever." He shifted his eyes and met Shishido's gaze.

Shishido squeezed Ohtori's hand and nodded towards Yuushi. "I know what to do."

That was how Ohtori came to be standing in front of the glass case in the auditorium of the Angelologists' headquarters. He opened his eyes and took in the sight of the nephilim before him.

"You are a beautiful creature," Ohtori whispered, his breath misting on the surface of the glass. "And I'm sorry I wasn't able to tell you that. If it were up to me, I wouldn't want you to suffer like this but…" His voice trailed off as he felt a slight pain shot in his side wound.

Ohtori drummed his fingers along the glass case and let his eyes wander at the sight of the nephilim one last time. He admired the way the creature's brownish orange hair framed the features of his face and remembered the bright russet eyes the creature had. He gazed at the rose pink feathers and remembered how soft they were to touch. Finally, he dropped his gaze to the dried blood on the nephilim's wound, twinkling like sapphire gemstones under the garish light of the incandescent bulb.

"The human race is suffering under duress of an incurable disease," Ohtori heaved a deep sigh. "We need the blood of your kind."

Ohtori turned on his heels and walked on the aisle between the rows of chairs. He exited the auditorium and locked the doors behind him without another glance at the glass-encased nephilim.

TBC

Author's Note: I never majored in Medicine/Health Sciences. The disease featured here is make-believe. Should it be possible that Black Blood bear a resemblance to an actual disease, disorder or illness, it is purely coincidental. Also, surgical procedures and scientific explanations described in this work of fan fiction are not accurate.

Comments and suggestions by way of reviews or PM are very much welcome and appreciated! ^_^

Thank you for taking the time to read this. The nephilims, vampires and humans will be very glad to see you in the next chapter. Oh, and here's a teaser: the next chapter will feature more characters and more of the nephilims so please stand by for it. Cheers!